``I have two more Satvirs for my country,'' declared Chauhan, pointing towards Satvir's two sons -- 14-year-old Jagdish and 13-year-old Nahar -- his voice not quivering a bit. ``I will groom them and make them tough like my sons. They will join the Army and bring us glory in the same manner as Satvir did.'' It is then that the tears gush forth, as does pride: ``My son has died a lion's death, and I am proud of him. I have no regrets.''

His wife, Kripa Devi, asserts the same. ``Everyone has to die one day. But to die for one's country is the biggest honour for a soldier. Mujhe unpar garv hai (I am proud of him),'' she says.

Havildar Satvir Singh Chauhan joined the Army in 1989 and was inducted into the Rajputana Rifles. An adept gunner, he was apart of the Delta company entrusted the task of capturing certain strategic locations at Point 5100 in Kargil on June 28. Satvir was positioned on one of the hill tops with a medium machine gun (MMG) to give fire cover to his fellow men.

Rifleman Bikram Singh Tanwar, his company mate, recalls: ``It was around 3.30 in the morning. The firing had been on for 10 hours. Suddenly, Satvir was hit in the throat by a bullet. But he didn't leave his MMG and kept on firing. We knew he was badly hurt but he said he was okay. He stay put there and prompted us to advance...He fired at least six magazines before collapsing. His finger was on the trigger of the MMG when we went to pick him up,'' he says.

Chauhan remembers that Satvir was in Class IX when one day he came up to him and said he wanted to do some job. ``I told him I didn't have enough money to get him a government job, and asked, `Will you join the Army?' He was ready immediately.''

The Chauhans have had frequent brushes with tragedy. Satvir's mother hadlost her mental balance after her eldest son's death, while another son went missing. Last year, Satvir's eldest son Krishan died in a road accident.

Today, in his death, Satvir made his family the pride of his Basai village and the state. Thousands of people from all over Rajasthan and Haryana flocked to the cremation site, weeping and raising slogans. As the Grenadiers picked up his coffin and walked towards the cremation ground, many jostled to lay a hand on it. Amid cries of Satvir Singh ka ye balidaan, yaad rakhega Hindustan, his body was consigned to the flames.

Satvir's cousin Naik Bhoop Singh, who is posted at the Army headquarters, said the martyr's mission, however, would not be left unfinished. ``I want to complete the job,'' he said. ``I will make a request to the Chief of the Army Staff to send me to the battle front.''